Guardian Life & Style (US) • Jan. 18, 2026, 2:23 p.m.

These microscopic mites, which burrow under your skin and cause ferocious itching, are incredibly hard to get rid of – and cases in the UK have soared. What is causing the outbreak, and is there anything we can do about it?

Louise (not her real name) is listing the contents of a bin liner she has packed with fresh essentials in case of emergency. Clothes, toothbrushes, hairbrushes, a teddy … “Although it should be two teddies,” she re-evaluates, quickly.

I can hear her trying to quell her panic. A diehard survivalist preparing for catastrophe?

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